Doom Drakes
|upkeep_cost = |num_figures = |moves = |melee = |defense = |resist = |hits = |abilities = Scouting Fire Breath 6 }} Doom Drakes are a type of Normal Unit. This unit is unique to the Draconian Race, and can only be built in Draconian towns, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain both a Barracks and Stables for this to be possible. Doom Drakes are powerful Melee Attackers, capable of striking through armor with ease, and thus having a good chance of inflicting at least some damage on any target. Even before charging into Melee, the Doom Drakes also unleash a powerful Fire Breath attack that can kill a few enemy figures before the fight even begins. Doom Drakes are Flying creatures and move at a very high rate. Combined with their powerful Breath Attack, this fast movement speed makes the Doom Drakes a fearsome opponent on the battlefield. In addition, Doom Drakes are highly resistant to magic, and can take a lot of damage before being destroyed. Doom Drakes require an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. Failure to pay these costs will result in the unit being disbanded automatically. Unit Properties Physical Description Doom Drakes are close relatives of the larger dragons that appear as Fantastic Units in the game, such as the Sky Drake and Great Drake. They are massive reptiles, slightly larger than the common horse, covered with purple scales and having two great wings to keep them aloft and actually propel them at impressive speeds. As dragons, they can breathe fire at their enemies. Each Doom Drake is ridden by a single Draconian - a more distant relative of the dragon family, having a more humanoid shape. Both the mount and the rider are highly resistant to magic. Draconian Doom Drakes are a , though containing only when fully healed. Attack Properties The Doom Drakes' Melee Attack is quite ferocious, comparable to that of a Halberdiers unit but having a much better chance of inflicting at least some damage to any target, even a well-armored one. More importantly, they possess a powerful Fire Breath attack that can kill one or more enemy even before the enemy gets a chance to retaliate. When both attacks are used together, the Doom Drakes can cause serious damage to almost any target. Each Doom Drake's Melee Attack has a strength of . With no additional bonuses, this delivers an average damage output of per Doom Drake. This is pretty much guaranteed to cause at least some damage to any but the most well-armored targets, especially when both Doom Drakes attack in unison. Furthermore, when the Doom Drakes make a voluntary Melee Attack against an enemy unit, they first execute a Fire Breath attack with a default strength of per Doom Drake. Each Doom Drake can therefore be expected to deliver about with this attack, on average. Any enemy that actually gets killed by this attack cannot deliver any Melee Damage back at the Doom Drakes. When fighting enemy low-tier Normal Units, expect at least one enemy to be killed off this way. Note that the Doom Drakes may not use their Fire Breath when Counter Attacking. Also note that opponents with Magic Immunity or Fire Immunity will shrug off any damage from this attack. Again, since Doom Drakes consist of only when fully healed, their Melee Attack is comparable to that of a regular Halberdiers unit - even when Fire Breath is employed. Nonetheless, the high attack strength values pretty much ensure that some damage will get through almost any armor. This makes the Doom Drakes useful against well-armored enemies. Defense Properties Despite being covered from head to toe in scales, neither the Doom Drakes themselves nor their Draconian riders are very well-armored, even when compared to other Draconian units. They have a Defense score of , which will block only about from any attack. This can protect the Drakes from weak Normal Units, but will not block all damage from a serious attack. Fortunately, the Doom Drakes have a respectable pool of Hit Points to fall back on, each Doom Drake possessing . Therefore, even damage that gets through the armor will still have to slowly chip away at the Drakes' Hit Points. Furthermore, Doom Drakes possess an impressively-high Resistance score of - which gives them a high chance to avert enemy Curses, spell effects and some Special Attacks. With only one extra Experience Level the Doom Drakes reach , and become totally immune to a handful of such ill effects. Each additional level will increase the variety of ill effects to which this unit is immune. Other Properties Like all other Draconian units, Doom Drakes have the innate ability to Fly. The great dragon wings of these creatures also serve to propel them at great speeds, giving them a Movement Allowance of ! As Flying units, Doom Drakes can easily scout and attack across Oceans. This means that no body of water is a safe barrier to hide behind when a Draconian empire is nearby. Their high flying speed also means that they can attack quickly, retreat easily, and evade enemy armies rather well. During combat, the fast Flying ability allows Doom Drakes to maneuver around enemy lines with ease, and protects them from most Melee Attacks by enemy ground units. Furthermore, the high speed allows the Doom Drakes to use their Breath Attack frequently, as it enables them to choose their targets carefully and decide when and where to attack. Finally, the Doom Drakes' Flying ability gives them an automatic Sight Range bonus, enabling them to see two tiles away on the overland map (including diagonally). Note that the Scouting ability they possess does not help at all here. Basic Strategy Though most of the Draconian army is both speedy and heavy-hitting, Doom Drakes are the only Draconian units that are suitable for attacking enemy Fantastic Units and Heroes on an even ground, thanks to their high Melee Attack score and strong Fire Breath. A single Doom Drakes unit can stand up to low-tier Fantastic Units quite admirably, and with Experience may be able to contend with even stronger units. Doom Drakes will use their speed to either outflank the enemy lines and go for the weaker Ranged Attack units in the rear, or leave this task to other Draconians - though Doom Drakes are by far the fastest and most efficient. More commonly however, they will seek to engage stronger enemies, especially well-armored ones that other Draconians cannot safely engage. Use the Doom Drakes' superior speed to ensure that their Fire Breath is used every time. Attack during your own turn, then withdraw to avoid the enemy's reaction. Remember that Doom Drakes do not use their Fire Breath when Counter Attacking! However, note that the Flying ability means that most ground-units cannot use Melee Attacks against the Doom Drakes, so it is not always necessary to withdraw at all. Again, the Doom Drakes' high Melee Attack will easily go through armor. Also, the Fire Breath attack - when used against enemy - can kill off some of the defending figures before they can retaliate, thus reducing risk to the Doom Drakes themselves. Remember that Doom Drakes have a fairly low Defense score, and are thus vulnerable to Ranged Attacks. Again, if you do not use the Doom Drakes to get rid of enemy ranged attackers early on, at least try to kill those units with your own Ranged Attackers (preferably Draconian Shamans or Draconian Magicians) quickly. Finally, note that although they are somewhat expensive, Doom Drakes become available very early, requiring only a Barracks and Stables. Try to build them as early as you can, to gain a serious advantage over your opponents. Doom Drakes can easily cross over to other continents and lay waste to any empire that has not defended its coastline properly. Ability Overview Scouting * Increases the unit's Sight Range to 2. On the overland map, this unit can now reveal the fog-of-war and detect enemy units within 2 tiles of its position (including diagonals). * : Flying units do not benefit from this ability at all, as their Sight Range is already 2 tiles in each direction. This ability should've increased Sight Range further for such units, but it does not. Fire Breath 6 * Whenever this unit makes a Melee Attack against an enemy target, it also delivers a Fire Damage Breath Attack with a strength of per . * As a Breath Attack, this damage is delivered before the enemy gets the chance to retaliate. Any in the target unit that are killed by the attack do not get to deliver any Melee Damage. * This Breath Attack does not occur when the unit is Counter Attacking against an enemy assailant. * This effect does nothing against targets possessing the Magic Immunity or Fire Immunity abilities. Experience Table The following table illustrates how Doom Drakes improve as they gain Experience. Any properties that are not listed here do not improve with Experience in any way. * To achieve this level, either the Warlord Retort or the Crusade spell must be in play. ** To achieve this level, both the Warlord Retort and the Crusade spell must be in play simultaneously. Average Damage Output The table below details the average amount of damage that Doom Drakes will deliver with each type of attack, based on . It can be used in comparison to the target's Defense rating to figure out the chance of hurting that target. Acquisition Doom Drakes are unique to the Draconian race, and thus may be produced in any Draconian Town. A town must contain both the Barracks and the Stables to be able to produce Doom Drakes. Should a town lose either its Barracks or Stables, it can no longer produce Doom Drakes until replacement structures are built. Note that this building requirement means that Doom Drakes are made available very early considering their strength. If you can afford it, build many of them as early as possible to begin expanding into neighbouring areas - even on other continents. The Construction Cost of this unit is . Doom Drakes may appear for hire as Mercenaries. They may already have some Experience on being hired, and several units may be hired simultaneously. Hiring these units requires a certain cost in that depends on many different factors. Doom Drake Mercenaries have the same Upkeep Cost as a normally-constructed unit. Category:Units Category:Normal Units Category:Draconians